Lotsafreshair Blog
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Lotsafreshair is all about sharing tips, tricks and adventures in the great outdoors. Encouraging one another to get out into the freshair, maybe try something they haven't done before. The blog provides bushwalking and hiking tips from an unexpected outdoors chick, Caro Ryan.
Lotsafreshair Blog
1M ago
Why do we pick up a book, bend open the cover and the first few pages and begin to read?
To escape? To move us? To transport us to another place? To switch off? To challenge? To learn?
Finding the right book (or, maybe like a partner) at least the ‘right for now’ book, is like finding the right recipe: you don’t know until you taste it, that it was exactly what you needed.
Over Christmas, after the death of my mother from dementia and a fairly tumultuous November, I picked up Dan(forth) Slater’s 3rd novel, Black Dog, Blue Sea.
I’ve known Dan for a few years and admire his writing ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
1M ago
4 Day Navigation Retreat Learn to navigate
Escape the day-to-day and find yourself in takayna/Tarkine, on lutruwita/Tasmania’s stunning west coast for 4 days learning navigation and connecting with this remote and wild place.
Based at Corinna Wilderness Village, we will come together and learn to navigate by traditional map and compass, read and interpret topographic maps with confidence and importantly, learn to read the landscape and how to walk with it, not against it.
24 – 27 April 2024
Reserve your space here!
Booking form launching soon!
Come and join me here in wonderful takayna/The T ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
3M ago
A 2-3 day hike on Airlie Beach’s doorstep
The Whitsundays, a destination usually associated with the aquamarine waters that ebb and flow around its 74 islands, is popular with tourists who line up for boat tours and reef days spent sailing, paddling, snorkelling and connected to all things blue.
The Conway feels like a hidden secret behind Airlie & Shute Harbour (Photo: Caro Ryan)
It’s July and I’ve come to Airlie Beach not to sink beneath the blue, but to dive amongst the green.
Leaving behind the frosty winter mornings of my home in NSW, the idea of wandering through Conway Nation ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
4M ago
How a 5 day backcountry ski trip went bad
In what must be the most basic of human fears, James woke up to find himself buried alive.
Outside, the wind buffeted the Main Range, out past Mt Kosciusko, but all was quiet inside his cosy, white snow cave.
In this episode of Rescued, we hear from James and his mate Dylan, as they talk about their two very different experiences of this epic backcountry adventure and how escape was just the beginning.
Listen here
View on Zencastr
Key story takeaways
The importance of understanding and managing group dynamics and communication in a crisis
Underst ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
6M ago
An expert in satellite communication devices
We venture into wild places to get away from it all.
But when it comes to calling for help, letting someone know that we’re delayed or even just giving our loved ones peace of mind, we have to rely on satellite communication methods – because mobile phone coverage often doesn’t reach to where we want to go.
In this episode, I speak with Linda Berryman from AMSA (that’s the Australian Maritime Safety Authority) in Canberra.
We do a deep dive into Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs), along with 2-way communication devices (such as Zoleo, InReach or ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
7M ago
When first aid can’t help you
We all know the importance of having solid first aid skills when we head off into the bush. A good remote area first aid course not only gives us the technical know-how of what to do in an emergency, but confidence to step in and act when someone suffers an injury.
However, there’s something that first aid courses can’t really prepare us for that can leave us feeling vulnerable especially when travelling solo.
In this episode, I hear from experienced bushwalker, cross-country skier, runner and all round adventure traveller, Owen, on what happened during day 21 of ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
7M ago
The Anatomy of a Search This story is a work of fiction, based on my 19 years of actual search jobs with NSW SES Bush Search and Rescue (BSAR), formerly Bushwalkers Wilderness Rescue Squad. It first appeared in Wild Magazine #187 Autumn 2023.
Saturday 8.38 am
The headlights of the Forester worked hard to cut through the mountain mist as Dave turned off the bitumen towards a lightening sky.
Dropping his speed to avoid kangaroos and potholes, the moment brought back memories of long-past adventures, before the claustrophobia of pandemic restrictions and bushfires had forced him insid ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
7M ago
The Anatomy of a Search This story is a work of fiction, based on my 19 years of actual search jobs with NSW SES Bush Search and Rescue (BSAR), formerly Bushwalkers Wilderness Rescue Squad. It first appeared in Wild Magazine #187 Autumn 2023.
Saturday 8.38 am
The headlights of the Forester worked hard to cut through the mountain mist as Dave turned off the bitumen towards a lightening sky.
Dropping his speed to avoid kangaroos and potholes, the moment brought back memories of long-past adventures, before the claustrophobia of pandemic restrictions and bushfires had forced him insid ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
7M ago
I’ve always enjoyed reviewing Suunto’s sports watches. Over the years I’ve looked at the 9 Peak and Spartan Baro HR and each time they impress me, drawing me closer to jumping ship permanently into the Suunto world. With their latest offering, the Suunto Vertical, they’ve finally convinced me.
Somewhere outside of Birdsville, outback Queensland
Why choosing the right watch is important
When you think about it, there’s something so absolutely personal about the watch you choose to wear. It’s not like underwear, you don’t change it every day; it’s more like a car, your trusted GP, a bank or even ..read more
Lotsafreshair Blog
8M ago
250 km north-west of Melbourne, the Grampians Peaks Trail traverses the dramatic ridge lines of Gariwerd National Park. This challenging 164 km multiday bushwalk/hike is split into 3 sections: North, Central and South and can be completed as a single thru-hike (usually over 13 days), or broken into shorter sections.
I’m creating a bunch of resources, tips and ideas from my Grampians Peaks Trail (GPT) journey in March 2023, kicking off with this video from the North section.
Grampians Peaks Trail // North
The post Grampians Peaks Trail appeared first on Lotsafreshair ..read more